A leaked internal briefing prepared by the Ministry of Justice for other Whitehall departments outlines plans for a new tier of non-jury courts in England and Wales. These courts would hear most cases currently tried before juries in the Crown Court. The MoJ said that ministers have not yet reached a final decision.

According to the document, Mr Lammy intends to ask Parliament to remove automatic jury trial for defendants whose alleged offences carry a maximum sentence of up to five years.

The reform is being explored as a way to confront unprecedented delays across the criminal courts. Crown Court backlogs now exceed 78,000 cases, the briefing states, with serious offences being listed so far ahead that defendants charged today may not be tried until late 2029 or early 2030. Officials warn the backlog could pass 100,000 without substantial intervention.

Earlier this year, retired Court of Appeal judge Sir Brian Leveson recommended that jury trials be removed for a wide range of serious offences and replaced with hearings before a judge alone or a judge sitting with two magistrates. He proposed creating an intermediate “Crown Court Bench Division” (CCBD), positioned between magistrates’ courts and the Crown Court jury system, to handle cases involving potential sentences of up to three years.

The leaked briefing says the “DPM’s decision” is to “go further than Sir Brian’s to achieve maximum impact”.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s PM programme, Sir Brian declined to comment on unpublished government proposals but said that “substantial, structural change is essential”, adding: “Our criminal justice system is at crisis point.”

The document says Mr Lammy wants to: “Introduce trial by judge alone for cases involving fraud and financial offences – if the judge considers the case to be suitably technical and lengthy. Exclusions for rape, murder, manslaughter and public interest.”

A spokesperson for the MoJ said: “No final decision has been taken by government. We have been clear there is a crisis in the courts, causing pain and anguish to victims – with 78,000 cases in the backlog and rising – which will require bold action to put right.”

Riel Karmy-Jones KC, chair of the Criminal Bar Association, said the proposals would not address the crisis in justice.

She said: “What they propose simply won’t work – it is not the magic pill that they promise. The consequences of their actions will be to destroy a criminal justice system that has been the pride of this country for centuries, and to destroy justice as we know it.

“Juries are not the cause of the backlog. The cause is the systematic underfunding and neglect that has been perpetrated by this government and its predecessors for years.”